


Nora

by NewEyes



Category: Star Trek, The Flash (Comics), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: AU, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-06
Updated: 2015-11-06
Packaged: 2018-04-30 09:14:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5158325
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NewEyes/pseuds/NewEyes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Len is the CMO on the Enterprise, Barry is the young science officer who got struck by lightning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nora

**Author's Note:**

  * For [coldflashtrash](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=coldflashtrash).



"Hey Doc," Barry jumped up to sit on the medical bed, swinging his legs in the air.

"Barry. Not injured again I hope?"

"Oh no, sorry, I didn't mean to worry you. I just came by to give you this." Barry fiddled with the green plant pot nervously, and then held it out to Len.

"What's this?" he said, and fixed Barry with a firm gaze. Barry looked a little apprehensive. Len knew he had a reputation for being strict, so much so that he'd gained a nickname, Captain Cold, but if they just stopped getting themselves hurt in the first place he wouldn't need to be so grumpy and stern all of the time. Most of the crew were a lot younger than him, and while they were polite and respectful, they usually kept their distance.

"It's just to say thank you, you know, for looking after me all that time when I was in a coma," Barry smiled. The kid was only a scientist but the last time he'd beamed down to a planet to study the flora for his science reports Thawne had misjudged severity of the weather, and that mistake had led to Barry getting struck by lightning.

It'd been strange. Barry lying on a bed in the corner of the hospital bay, unconscious, for nine months. During the busy parts of the day you could almost forget he was there but in the evening, when most of the staff and patients were gone and the lights were dim, Len would turn his attention to Barry and spend a few moments checking up on him. Telling Barry about a little about his day. Barry had no shortage of visitors though, there seemed to be an endless stream of young people coming into the med bay to sit next to him and say a few words.

"That is my job." On the surface Len kept up the stern facade but he couldn't help a small smile when he took the plant. His smile seemed to invigorate and encourage Barry, who grinned broadly back at him.

"Yeah, but it was a long time, and you never gave up on me."

"It's been months since someone died in my med bay, I wasn't going to let you break my streak," Len said.

"Well, I just stopped by say thank you and give you the gift. Don't worry, I bioengineered it to be hardy, just water it every couple of days and you should be good." Barry smiled and headed for the door, leaving Len standing there with a plant in his hand, wondering what the hell had just happened.

*

Of course, as soon as he spoke of the streak there was a serious incident. An explosion in the engine room, five people injured, three critically. Len was running around all day for four days straight and while they managed to stabilise two serious patients, the other died. By the time Len got back to his quarters he just wanted to sleep. He was good at what he did, it was his job to fix people and most days he loved the challenge, but he always felt drained every time someone died, every time there was somebody he couldn't help. His plans for the next ten hours were simple: sleep, sleep and sleep. But as he sat down on his bed his eyes fell on the bedside table and the plant that Barry had given him. The leaves were mostly brown and the whole thing was drooping. It was dying. Almost dead, but still clinging on to the faint, foolish hope that somebody would come.

That was how he found himself in front of Barry Allen's door at 0300 hours, holding a dying plant in his arms. The door opened and Barry was standing there, hair a mess, looking at him blearily.

"You have to save this plant."

*

Barry managed to save the plant. They agreed to keep it in the botany bay, if Len was too busy to drop by Barry could keep it watered for him.

*

"Come to see how Nora's doing?" Barry asked as Len walked in the door. The botany bay mostly contained long rows of green plants, and there was a small workspace near the entrance, where Barry was sitting and studying something under a microscope.

"I didn't even get to name my own plant," Len grumbled. He sat down in the chair opposite Barry.

"Oh, well, you can name her something different if you want but I was working on her for a while before I gave her to you, and I guess it sort of stuck for me." Barry shrugged.

"I didn't really have a particular name in mind, didn't know I needed to name a plant." Len had never really bothered with plants before, he'd always been much more interested in the human side of biology.

"I've always done it. My Mom used to love gardening when I was a kid, she passed it on to me, it's why I decided to specialise in botany when I was at college." Barry looked fond as he remembered his childhood. "What about you, Capt-, uh, Doctor Snart? Why did you become a doctor?"

"Call me Len," he stalled, trying to think of a lie that wouldn't reveal too much about himself. "Doctor's are well paid and luxury appealed, but my life obviously went wrong somewhere, I don't know what I did to get saddled with you lot," Len smirked.

Barry shook his head. "I know you like us really, even if you pretend not to. But if you wanted to get rich there are easier ways, being a doctor takes a lot of study and hard work. You can do better than that excuse, you're not fooling me." Len wandered over to Nora, sitting on the side. He filled up a watering can from the nearest sink, and started to water her. Len took a deep breath.

"I saw a lot of injuries as a kid, the places I lived, the people I grew up with. Pain, people hurting. I couldn't do much to help, not really, but I wanted to, I wanted no-one to get hurt ever again. So I ran away to college to study, and then I kept running until I ended up here, light years away." He didn't turn around and look at Barry.

"Yeah, I know something about running too," Barry murmured. Len heard Barry get up and walk over to him, the gentle press of a hand on his shoulder. He could feel Barry peering over his shoulder at Nora and Len was suddenly hyper of the warm body pressed against his.

"Oh, cool," Barry said excitedly, brushing up against Len's back and Len managed to hold back a shiver. He could feel Barry's breath on his neck. "She's doing really well, you take good care of her."

"Not all of the time."

"When you can, you do," Barry said firmly. "You're down here every day." Len turned around so that he was looking at Barry. They were very close, and Barry was smiling softly.

"I know your secret."

"Hmmm?"

"You pretend to be all cold on the surface and it fools most people, but underneath there's good in you too."

Len leaned closer and he saw Barry's eyes close. Then they were kissing. It started out slowly, a soft press of lips. Barry settled his arms comfortably around Len's waist, holding him close. It had been so long since Len had had someone's arms around him, years.

When he was younger he'd often paid for sex, tried to fool himself that what he was craving was just physical, that he didn't need intimacy, he didn't need anybody. But some of his loneliest memories were of lying on a double bed naked, staring up swirling patterns on the ceiling, while the girl he'd been with took her money and left.

So he didn't bother much with that nowadays

But suddenly here in his arms was Barry Allen. Young, smart, beautiful. Len felt his heart stutter in a way it hadn't in years and he curled his tongue around Barry's, the kiss turning heated. Barry started making these little breathy gasps that went straight to his dick, everything was so much better.

"Hey Barry, have you seen those-, oh God, my eyes!" Barry startled in his arms.

"Cisco!"

"Oh my God! You and Captain Cold!" Cisco realised he'd used the nickname and slapped his hand to his forehead. "Sorry, Doctor Snart, please don't kill me."

"I think I prefer Captain Cold to Doctor Snart, don't you?" Len enjoyed watching Cisco squirm.

"Uh..." Cisco trailed off.

"Well, I guess this is my cue to leave. I'll see you tomorrow, Barry." Len reluctantly stepped out of Barry's arms and he was almost out of the door when he heard Cisco's hushed whisper.

"So when you said he kept coming to your lab to 'water a plant', was that just a euphemism or....?"

"Oh God," Barry groaned.

Len smirked.

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by:  
> http://coldflashtrash.tumblr.com/post/131912538728/coldflashtrash-we-always-talk-about-len-and
> 
> My Tumblr: http://xxxneweyesxxx.tumblr.com/


End file.
